TigerB

Yes, the financial sweetener might be nice but doesn't cover the disappointment of missing a port that you really want to visit.

That's a bugger! What was the reason given?

We've been on both Iona and Arvia where security screening has taken place onboard, albeit very rarely; it wasn't really much of an inconvenience, and a couple of times appeared to be quicker than port security screening.

That ship must have been massive; just look at it compared to that aeroplane!😯

Great report Selbourne, and thanks for the photos👍🏻 The shower controls are in the same location as they are on Iona and Arvia, and also on Britannia I think, and our lass can just about reach those. The shower seat on the two larger ships is deeper though, so maybe that's why. It's better with those two ships as the shower head has a stop/start button on it, so I can set the water to flow on the wall and she can control it with the button. I agree, cruiseify seems to sum up the arrangements of tunes to suit a cruise audience. I think you should continue using it; with your readership it won't be long before it becomes viral. You never know, it may make the OED in a couple of years!😉 Don't lose the e though, as you would then have the name of a German travel agent. Hopefully, you'll be able to dock at Key West tomorrow. Your clocks will go back another hour after you leave won't they, as you make your way to New Orleans?

Obviously, I would expect you to first remove your longjohns, drying on the line.😉

Looking at those menus I reckon I would give lunch a miss. For dinner though I would be mostly having the gravadlax and trout. Can I ask a favour of you? When you get a few minutes can you please take some photos of the bathroom. We are in an outside cabin next year, but would expect it to be the same layout. Thanks, young man👍🏻

Hey, look at you with your gaps and text between your photos! 👍🏻 I think you had a lucky escape there with 'Saint Marie', no fear now of you ending up a crime scene!😉 To be fair, I do know that the tour would not have been at all suitable for our lass and her wheelchair. You have piqued my interest with the golf buggy tour, if we were ever to visit that island. Looking at the one in the photo, I reckon she would be able to transfer into it. Failing that, I could take a length of rope and tow her. That would be okay I'm sure; I mean, what could go wrong?🙄 Great photos, by the way🙂

Dining: For this to work effectively in the MDRs you're all going to have to agree on a time to eat together, and it may work better if you eat earlier; if it is offered for your cruise, it may be advisable for four members of your party to pre-book tables for the early times. Your can only pre-book tables up to a party size of six, that is why it would need four to do that. Also, I would think it would be easier to achieve in the two larger MDRs, Pearl and Coral. Once onboard, speak with a Head Waiter or Restaurant Manager and explain the situation, so they can then try and put you all together. Obviously, you won't be on a table for 21, but in Pearl or Coral it is more likely that they may be able to accommodate you on large tables that are close to each other, perhaps two six-seaters and an eight-seater set for nine. With speciality dining I would expect it would be far for difficult to achieve your goal because the restaurants are smaller. However, it wouldn't hurt to ask. Shows: I would hazard a guess that you wouldn't have a cat in hell's chance of getting seats reserved in Headliners or any of the other venues. It would be a case of making sure you all rock up really early and grab your seats. Bear in mind that when you pre-book for Headliners on the My Holiday app/non-app, you can only do so for those guests in your cabin; therefore, multiple bookings will be required. Bars: As with entertainment venues, I would say it would be very unlikely that you would be able to achieve your goal; again, a case of everyone rocking up early. If it is just for one night only, I would suggest you make an appointment as soon as you board with the Bar Manager. I don't know if you are aware but there is an area in the Glass House that (I think) is used for wine tastings and so on; see below... I would say it could accommodate a group of your size, and the Bar Manager may allow you to use it for one night. Good luck with your planning 🙂

@majortom10, you can pre-book and we have. @Ganners, the second part of the response from @Selbourne will fit your needs. We travelled as a group of eight on Britannia. I pre-booked a table of four and got my 20% discount and additional Peninsula discount. One of our daughters pre-booked the other table of four and got the 20% discount; she couldn't get the Peninsula discount too as she wasn't a member. Once onboard, I went to speak with the restaurant host; unfortunately, because Britannia's Epicurean is smaller than the one on Iona, they couldn't push the tables together but we all sat at two adjacent window tables and it was just fine. I have seen tables pushed together on both Iona and Arvia in order to accommodate larger groups; just bear in mind that it is very unlikely that they will be window tables. Going on from what Selbourne suggests, if I were in your position, and to benefit from the discount, I would get three members of the party to pre-book, table sizes being four, three, and two. Once onboard go and visit the restaurant to make sure they can put them together.

Welcome to the boards, @DDeeBee75. As has already been written, there's a reason for allocated times, and it would be extremely unlikely that you would get it changed. If you are keen to get onboard early to book things you can do that from the terminal if you get there earlier than your allotted time, subject to you being able to get on to the ship's WiFi.

Thanks for the update 👍 Luckily, and a minor 'benefit' of having a wheelchair user in our party, we have always been taken on the 'route of least resistance' to a table in the main section, be it in the middle or against the windows. I too miss the spectacle of the crêpes being prepared tableside; I suppose, if you had asked your waiting team to let you know when they were going to start yours, you could have gone to the middle of the restaurant to watch the spectacle. Fuerteventura next? We're not stopping there, just doing Tenerife, Gran Canaria, and Lanzarote. Will you be just one day in Lisbon then, or missing Cadiz?

Sorry to read that. Get well soon, and take care.

Another great report Selbourne, and fantastic photos.👍🏻 Yes, the toilet situation!🙄 Several times, when assisting our lass in the 'handicapped stall', we have experienced women, on hearing a male voice or seeing me (with my head bowed), screaming for me to get out and that they were going to call security, despite our lass calmly explaining the situation. One time, in a Target, a woman collared a member of staff and demanded that they eject us from the store. Our lass gave her a piece of her mind; the staff member took our side. Miami itself is not somewhere we would purposely return to, but if it were on a cruise itinerary we would certainly consider doing what you did, starting at South Pointe and walking/bouling north. Hopefully, you'll both be able to get off at Key West.🤞

Thanks for the update👍🏻 What a disappointing day for you! Hopefully you'll have better luck at Miami Beach, where you can at least bimble up and down the oceanfront, drink an overpriced cockertail or two, and have a giggle at the poseurs with their garishly coloured super cars.

Good move going to Cocoa Beach, something you both should enjoy. You should at least be able to have a bimble along the oceanfront. To the best of my recollection, there are manatees in Banana river, which runs along the other side of Cocoa Beach.

@mrsgoggins, hopefully the following step-by-step instructions will assist you with your photos... As you will already know, you can upload many images ready to post... However, you need to insert them individually into your post to get the gap between them. When you insert your first photo the cursor will be on the right side, as below... Click on the return key twice... That will place the cursor on the left side and with a double space underneath your image... Now insert your second image. Your post will now look like this... Repeat for each image you insert. To widen or shorten the gap, or write text between the images, just click between two images to place the cursor; you can then lengthen or shorten the gap, or insert your text. Hopefully, you will soon be an expert!👍🏻 Now, don't make me get on the next plane to your next port, and come onboard to show you in person 😂 Assisting me with this demo was the beautiful CoCo 🙂

Thanks, but the photo of our supreme leader was posted in error!🤭 I was trying again to show MrsG how to post photos with a tap, and my finger slipped.

Posted in error

As you know Selbourne, my wife depends a great deal on me, as does your wife on you, and we are both singing from the same hymn sheet when we say their comfort and safety is paramount, more important than anything else. It's not asking much to expect a little consideration from those crew members who have it in their power to help you achieve that, to do so. I really do feel that you both have been treated appallingly so far. The state of the ship also makes me think that her days may be numbered. Our first cruise on Aurora is in September next year, selected more than anything for the itinerary, but if the experience of life onboard is anything like yours, I fear we will be thinking again. I do hope that things improve for you and that the immigration process today goes more smoothly than you anticipate, and that you both get to do something together. Once off the ship, I would be tempted to conduct a reccie in the area where tours are leaving from, to establish if KSC have their own buses waiting to take passengers who haven't pre-booked, to the centre. I would firmly expect those buses to be wheelchair accessible. Yes, it would be too late, and possibly financially restrictive for you to then take an ad-hoc tour, but if it was me, I would use that fact as ammunition in a complaint about the lack of accessible transport provided on behalf of P&O. I await your next post with anticipation.

Ooh, do you think Homeland Security and the TSA have now got his card marked? 🤭 Don't fret Selbourne lad, a full cavity search isn't anything to write home about!😉

I don't mean to rain on your parade, but you appear to be having a 'Selbourne moment' with your dates.🤭 Thanks for the update, by the way🙂

Thanks for the update👍🏻 It looks like the Bahamas is one that won't make it on to our 'to do' list. I hope you get sorted with your new table. I suppose one thing about it being a larger table is that you won't be sat at one of those pesky two-seaters where your neighbours are just a few inches from you. I really don't want to tempt fate, but I hope that when you sit down at your new table for the first time, they then don't start showing six others to it. That would no doubt be the straw that broke the camel's back!

Thanks for the update 👍🏻 The scabbard fish and banana looks interesting; something I wouldn't mind trying.

@terrierjohn, you'll be fine with a wheelchair if you are careful. To be fair, the traffic doesn't speed through the tunnel, and our lass would maintain a driving course close to the wall so those bipeds wishing to overtake her, or walking towards us would have to step into the road. Given the height of the kerbs anyway and the hit and miss locations of drop down kerbs, she spent a fair bit of time using the roads in St George, with me protecting her from traffic.